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Recommendations to unlock safe advances in remotely piloted and autonomous drone flight 

Published:
image of air traffic control screen

The Law Commission of England and Wales has today published its final report on Aviation Autonomy, recommending targeted changes to ensure that remotely piloted and autonomous uncrewed aircraft systems (UAS) – such as drones – can operate with equivalent levels of safety to crewed flight. 

Although a legal framework already governs the use of drones, our report concludes that several areas require clarification or supplementary rules if innovation is to progress safely. We recommend that some reform to the law is needed immediately or in the near future, while some changes, set out in part 3 of our report, are aimed at the longer term.  

Key recommendations include: 

  • Clear legal definitions and harmonisation of terminology across legislation.
  • Legislative change to enable the provision of traffic management services to UAS.
  • Measures to safeguard passengers when there is no pilot, and potentially no cabin crew, on board.
  • Reallocation of pilot responsibilities for fully autonomous operations.
  • Updates to the criminal law, including modernizing the law on hijacking.

Professor Alison Young, Commissioner for Public Law, said:  

“Aviation is changing rapidly, and the law must keep pace. Our recommendations ensure a clear, principled framework that protects the public, upholds accountability, and gives industry the legal certainty it needs to invest and innovate safely.”  

Giancarlo Buono, Group Director Safety & Airspace Regulation at the UK Civil Aviation Authority said: 

“Aviation technology is undergoing a revolution and never seen before innovations are taking to the skies.  

“We are working closely with government and industry to ensure the law and regulations reflect the new opportunities and challenges of remotely piloted and autonomous aircraft. This is essential to enable new advancements to develop safely in the industry. 

“We welcome the publication of the Law Commission’s report and will consider their recommendations in full.” 

Further details of the project and the final report are available here.